Book review: motivational interviewing

I first read this book when studying Nutritional Therapy in 2013 and have found myself returning to it through client needs but also thru my own, which when you get into the main technique, is probably the most important question!

Motivational interviewing is a counselling approach that helps clients explore their feelings about changing a behaviour and find their own motivation to make a change. I have used it thru all three of my fields - physical fitness, nutritional therapy and psychology + mindset work. It's client-centred, empathetic and collaborative and aims to empower clients to take ownership of their behaviour change journey. 

My favourite part of the technique of motivational interviewing is that it focuses on asking open-ended questions. Why? To get clients to talk about how THEY feel. This encourages them to think about the disconnect between what they want and their current behaviour. And that’s where the magic truly happens!

This is the opposite of pressure. Instead of thinking you know what someone should do, you're asking open-ended questions because you're curious about where someone stands with their own behaviour. Food diaries are not that dissimilar - as a nutritional therapist, I care less about the what clients are eating as to why (& how!). All behaviours are so much further that the ‘whats’!

An open ended question really invites someone to experience the tension between how they truly feel about where they are, and the fact that they are not doing anything about it. It's not an issue of motivation. What's in their way is a lack of belief in their ability to change-they don't think they can.

I love the technique of motivational interviewing because it shifts you from a place of judgment to compassion, and it creates space for change to happen.